Earlier in the month it was massive fires in Spain, this week it’s flash floods. In Southern Spain, the areas of Andalucia, Malaga and Murcia were three of those affected by the floods yesterday. Only four weeks ago residents in some of these areas were evacuated after forest fires threatened their homes. Yesterday, more than 600 people were evacuated again as torrential downpours caused rivers to burst their banks and millions of cubic feet of water to rush into streets and homes in this drought-stricken area of Southern Spain.

The floods in Southern Spain are in an area that has been suffering from a severe drought for more than two years and then, three days ago, it began to rain. In only three days, much of Southern Spain had more than 110 millimeters of rainfall — five times more rain than the area normally gets in a month. Rivers burst their banks and rushed into houses, and cars were picked up by the flood waters and sent spinning through the streets.

Unsuspecting Spaniards were caught in the flood waters or saw it suddenly rushing into their homes. Some had to escape to the second storey of their house, or to rooftops where they waited to be rescued.

Spanish authorities are reporting at least six deaths because of the flood water, including those of an elderly woman and a 10-year-old girl who drowned.

Unfortunately, floods in Southern Spain could still worsen as more rain, including severe thunderstorms, are forecast throughout the weekend and into early next week.